As we were planning our dinner on a Friday, we decided to go to the Bistro du Vin, Zion Road instead of the French restaurant’s main outlet at Shaw Centre because we thought it was more out-of-the-way and therefore would be less crowded. Boy, were we wrong!
We had not been to the Bistro du Vin, Zion Road branch, before and so it was also a good chance to compare the difference. We were really surprised to see that it was not only a full house, it was bursting at the seams. The restaurant is smaller than the one at Shaw Centre and occupies a narrow space. The place was noisy and squeezy. The decor is similar to that at Shaw and has the same type of look. Dark walls and dim lighting with a lot of French restaurant paraphernalia lined the walls. But somehow the overall feel is not the same. We ordered a selection of dishes to be shared by our party of four.
We started off with a platter of cold meats – Saussison (a kind of dry cured French sausage) and Iberico ham ($24) and some escargots ($17). The meats had robust tastes but because they were sliced so thinly (you can almost see through the Iberico ham), each piece was very light and easy on the palate. The escargots were as always, earthy and grassy in taste and were the perfect companion for the bread.
Dinner at a French restaurant would not be complete without wine. Bistro has a one-for-one corkage policy whereby you can BYO a bottle with no charge if you order one from their wine list. Otherwise the regular corkage fee is $30. We had brought along a 2007 Chateau Pontet Canet and ordered a dry white Muscadet wine Chateau du Poyet ($65) from the restaurant. It was light and refreshing and helped to liven up the meal.
One of the ‘rarer’ vegetables, white asparagus, was apparently in season and available, so we decided to try some ($7 per stick). They were gorgeous. Juicy with dellcate yet distinctive flavours. They were the highlight of the dinner. We are plotting our next trip to Bistro to have another round of the asparagus even as I write this post.
Our main courses were the Angus ribeye steak ($45) and coq au vin ($35). These are classic dishes here and performed to expectation. The presentation of the food was quite basic. The ribeye was well marbled and rich in flavour. The coq au vin was half a chicken braised in red wine with carrots and mushrooms. It can be a complete meal by itself. The portion is big and can be shared by two or more persons. The rich and oily main courses were well complemented with the red wine which also helped to cut through the oiliness.
After all that food, we only had space for some token dessert and so ordered two small ones to be shared. The Le Fondant au chocolat (hot chocolate cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream) ($14) and a creme brulee ($10) brought our dinner to a sweet end. The food here at Bistro du VIn, Zion Road was predictably good, taste-wise similar to the main outlet at Shaw Centre. However, we still prefer the atmosphere at the one at Shaw.
Ratings:
Food: 4
Service: 3
Value: 3
Atmosphere: 3
Overall Rating: 3 TOPs
Bistro du Vin
56 Zion Road
Singapore 247781
Tel : +65 6836 6313
Opening Hours : 12:00pm – 2:00pm; 6:30pm – 10:00pm
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